The High Cost of Low Prices

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Lately, my inbox has been flooded with too many emails from retailers proclaiming Holiday Sale! Low Prices! Last Chance!

And each time I see sales for sweaters and dresses, I think of the workers who make them — mostly women who toil for long hours in overheated, dirty factories to bring us products at low, low prices but with a high human cost.

I’ve met women like these in the course of my work with AJWS in Cambodia. Tragically, they make less than $3 a day.

Many begin their seven-day, 80+ hour workweek at the age of 15 or 16. Even pregnant women aren’t exempt from this grueling schedule, and many labor the whole day on their feet.

If, like me, you find this situation shocking and unacceptable, please join AJWS in helping Cambodian garment workers stand up for their rights and demand better working conditions.

Your year-end contribution will support our local partner organizations working to help people in their own communities who are living under the weight of poverty and oppression.

One of our partners in Cambodia advocates for the rights of factory workers and promotes women as leaders within unions. They support workers like Phong, a young organizer who dreams of a brighter future — one in which she can pursue higher education and a career that makes a difference for her family and community.

As the holiday shopping frenzy hits its peak, I hope you’ll send a tax-deductible, year-end gift to help garment workers like Phong and people all around the globe achieve their dreams for a more just future. 

 

messinger-300x300Ruth W. Messinger is president of American Jewish World Service (AJWS), the world’s leading Jewish organization working to end poverty and realize human rights in the developing world.